Schutzhund & KNPV Training Peculiarities

Differences between Schutzhund & KNPV Training

Schutzhund training was started by Max von Stephanitz, the developer
of the German Shepherd dog breed. He developed Schutzhund to use it
as a breeder tool. Schutzhund was intended to give a breeder the
method to measure working qualities of a dog to consider received
information in breeding program. At first Schutzhund was developed
as certification program, its significance preserves up to the
present. But during last years it turned into sport, a competition
that allows to see what handler can train his dogs better.

Schutzhund Blind for Advanced Dog Training

KNPV is known as Royal Dutch Police Dog Sport. You may think that
the name means that this sport improves police dog skills. It is not
true. The dogs trained in KNPV can’t and shouldn’t work in police
forces. This standard was originally created to be used as a
certification program of Dutch government for citizens aimed on
training and qualification of the dogs that would be sent to the
Dutch police. Many exercises of KNPV are connected with skills
a police dog needs. But a KNPV titled dog must have 5 or 6
weeks-long training to be allowed to practical work as a street
police service dog. KNPV turned into a dog sport more than into a
Dutch certification program.

Arm Protection Sleeve for Bite Work

A dog can be trained to bite a man in any dog sport due to its prey
drive. A dog must learn to work in his “defensive drive” and in
“fight drive” to become police service work.

Dogs are also trained to track in Schutzhund. The aim of
"competition foot step tracking” style in Schutzhund is not only to
teach a dog to follow a track (which is a simple task), but also to
test a trainer’s ability to teach his dog to follow the scent
precisely and at definite speed. Determinative factor of estimation
of this kind of work is not reaching the end of track, but the style
a dog is working in (calm, methodological, not getting of the track
on a foot or two and not moving by a corner by more than body
length). It’s difficult to train a dog in a such way when the
pressure needed to slow down dog’s speed according to the rules,
doesn’t turn into the obedience work. If it is so, the dog seems to
be depressed and to hate this work. Good tracking work is an art.

Scratch Suit for KNPV and Schutzhund

It is important to understand that Schutzhund tracking work doesn’t
related with police tracking work. The matter of fact is that even
if a dog is a great sport sniffer dog, it won’t be effective in
police service. There are different approaches to tracking work in
police and sport. A service dog must be trained to track through
drive, and its speed is an important part of the training.

In general, there is no tracking work test in KNPV
certification (such test are in the separated tracking program). One
of the KNPV exercises is searching for an article or a helper in
woods. It is not good for future service dogs, because a dog is
trained to search an airborne scent, but it is not trained to search
a scent that comes from the ground that is important for good
tracking service dog.

Protection work in Schutzhund has little common with police service.
There is a very strict order in Schutzhund training and a dog can be
“programmed” for it. Of course, such work requires a certain kind of
temperament and drive to perform these standard exercises. But the
level of drive is so low that Schutzhund certification doesn’t show
special value. To be honest, the properly trained dog can pass
Schutzhund test, but it can’t be compared with less experienced dogs
that passed a police test.

Bite Sleeve in Training Process

When a dog becomes Schutzhund titled, the judge gives a decision
about dog’s “courage” shown during the competition. A “Pronounced”
grade is the highest. But 90% Schutzhund don’t understand that there
is aggression in dog’s behaviour. They don’t understand fight drive
and don’t want to admit this. Dogs are given with “Pronounced” grade
when they don’t deserve it. It is obvious because of a number of
Schutzhund titled dogs that don’t have courage to be used in police
service. The problem is in confusing “very active prey drive” with
real aggression by judges.

Obedience in Schutzhund training is also rather precise, even more
than a service dog needs. It is very difficult to teach a dog to
perform commands precisely and maintain its respectable drive. In
most cases, dogs with minor behavior problems lose their drive
because of inappropriate training of novice handlers. But this
problem reduced during last 15 years due to better video materials
and books.

KNPV sport doesn’t require the same level of precision at the same
time. It seems that Dutch handlers work very hard with dogs in
obedience. It is probably because the majority of their dogs are
Malinua Shepherds with very high level of drive to stand pressure
and maintain their drive, so trainers had no need to develop new
methods.

There are many strictly prey dogs in KNPV sport. This dog sport
gains popularity in Holland, because many people understand the
defects of Schutzhund and don’t want to accept them. These people
suppose that KNPV is more difficult, where only the tough can
survive. Unfortunately, that’s not true. You can call KNPV a great
sport if you think it is “just a sport”.

There are many KNPV-dogs that bite like alligators, but that have
problems with their nerves. It makes them a little dangerous for
helpers. Such dogs cost less than quality dogs. And importers often
want to earn some extra money on them.

The reason to train your dog in KNPV is that there is no tracking
and exercises are exciting to train for (article and handler
protection for example).

Schutzhund and KNPVare useful for service dogs handlers. Both of
them have positive influence on service dogs breeding. But not all
Schutzhund and KNPV dogs can become police service dogs. The best
candidates to work in police forces are young dogs that have started
training in Schutzhund or KNPV (bite development stage), but are not
titled. Most of training time grown-up titled dogs, bought for
service purposes, correct the problems they got during sport
training and are reprogrammed to work on the street.